Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP Review

Is it art? Is it a game? Who cares, it's awesome.

Far more epic in scope than its title suggests, Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP is an unusual mash-up of moody concept album and dark fantasy adventure game. The line between the two is fuzzy to begin with, and it blurs together in unexpected ways as you delve deeper into this enchanting world. Sword & Sworcery's simple-but-evocative 8-bit art style, unconventional storytelling and abstract puzzles coalesce with Jim Guthrie's marvelous atmospheric soundtrack to create something uniquely magical.

Sword & Sworcery's grim tale of exploration and discovery follows the troubled adventures of a lone Scythian warrior and her intrepid pooch Dogfella as they attempt to recover a mystical tome and unlock ancient powers capable of thwarting an evil force. Their quest follows a winding path through luminous forests, subterranean temples, and bushy groves brimming with secrets to uncover. Delving into these beautiful settings and solving mysteries is an enthralling process on its own, but the protagonist's unusual take on the world as she encounters it offers a refreshing way to experience her journey.

Sword & Sworcery's piecemeal approach to storytelling is surprisingly effective at drawing you in, despite its minimalistic nature. Much of the tale unfolds through the Sycthian's own inner monologue, which manifests as often-humorous text boxes written in a second-person perspective. Bizarre observations ("the well seemed unwell") frequently mix with funny commentary ("we bridged the canyon and we felt super smart") in goofy ways that add loads of personality to her character and work to strengthen your connection with her early on. Just like the mobile versions, thoughtful Twitter integration lets you share any of these quirky comments online, and they lighten the tone during some of the otherwise somber stretches of the foreboding tale.

The original iOS version was a very tactile experience that incorporated touch and tilt into its fold. While some of that is lost in the transition to mouse controls, it's for the better, since the point-and-click gameplay feels right at home on the PC. Prodding hotspots to uncover clues as you roam about each pixilated scene is a smooth, familiar process, and I like how a quick zip of the mouse-wheel lets you zoom in for a quick closer look at your surroundings.

Magic and swordplay take an interesting front-seat in the puzzles you encounter, adding a strong balance to Sword & Sworcery's more freeform exploratory sections. Once you acquire the Megatome early in your quest, you can bust out spell mojo to reveal hidden secrets and influence the environment. Using magic puts The Scythian in a kneeling position while turning your cursor into a glowing orb that's frequently used to highlight hotspots, drag elements and interact with the scenery when solving puzzles. The abstract nature of these challenges can make it tricky to figure out what's being asked of you, but they're not terribly tough to solve. Dabbling is a fun part of the process, since Sword & Sworcery's creative scope alone is impressive – one of the four chapters is tied to the moon and requires a full lunar cycle to complete, as elements shift at different times to allow you access to certain locations. Sure, if you're antsy you can skirt around it with a little techno-wizardry, but it's showcases one of the many cool artistic approaches woven throughout the game.

Sword & Sworcery's puzzle-like combat also serves as a great change of pace. Clicking either your sword or your shield icon, you must trade and deflect blows from monsters and other larger foes obstructing your path. There's a rhythmic flow to these encounters that requires some old-school pattern recognition and quick reflexes, and while they don't appear too often during the adventure, several spectacular multi-part boss battles offer exciting variations on the combat formula.

Sword & Sworcery also delivers a deep and alluring sense of atmosphere. While the earthy pixel art environments are meticulously crafted, paired with believable animations to help bring the blocky characters and game world to life, Jim Guthrie's captivating soundtrack plays a major role in driving the mood of each phase of the journey. PC owners get the "LP" version of Guthrie's work, since even more of his tunes are worked into the adventure than on the iOS version. Crafted from a mix of electronic and organic instruments, his playful, dynamic soundscapes switch gears across numerous musical themes that amplify the impact of the scenery and plot structure.

The vistas are truly gorgeous.

With such a great audio score, it's also great to see the strong musical elements echoed in other areas of the game design. Switching between the waking and dreaming worlds is represented by flipping a magical record over to its B-side, for example, and many of the puzzles themselves have a musical component to them. Guthrie even makes a few appearances in the game as himself – it's particularly awesome when he puts on a deep forest concert atop a wall of pixilated amps.

The Verdict

Sword & Sworcery masterfully blends music, art, storytelling and gameplay in deeply poetic ways that you just don’t see very often. As such, it doesn’t take a love of adventure games to get wrapped up in the magic of this indie gem. It may only take a handful of hours to work your way through the game’s four chapters (not counting waiting for the moon to change cycles), but the impact it leaves will stay with you long after you’ve moved on.